CrossFit inspires athlete to open up about epilepsy

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Photos:Finding her strength

CrossFit athlete Jenny LaBaw is seen here at the 400-mile mark of a 500-mile run through the Rocky Mountains, from New Mexico to Wyoming. She is raising money for the Epilepsy Foundation of America.

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Photos:Finding her strength

In 2011, LaBaw came in sixth in the highly competitive CrossFit Games. This success gave her the confidence she needed to come forward with her biggest secret: She's had epilepsy since the age of 8.

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Photos:Finding her strength

LaBaw, seen here leading the pack during a 2012 workout, continues to compete.

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Photos:Finding her strength

LaBaw credits her boyfriend, Marcus Brown, with encouraging her along her journey.

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Photos:Finding her strength

LaBaw's run is expected to end on October 19, after one month. Here she is running near Silverton, Colorado.

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Photos:Finding her strength

LaBaw says she has been able to control her seizures for the past several years.

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Story highlights

Jenny LaBaw made a name for herself in CrossFit competitions

She came forward in 2012 to reveal she has epilepsy

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(CNN)It was the 2011 Reebok CrossFit Games, and Jenny LaBaw was an underdog.

She had only started training for the competition seven months before. While CrossFit seemed extreme to some, the fitness regimen made sense to LaBaw, who had competed in sports through childhood and college and ran marathons as an adult.

Still, many were surprised -- including LaBaw -- when she placed sixth in the competition that year, making her the "sixth fittest person in the world." Her boyfriend, Marcus Brown, said that her involvement in CrossFit led to a "rebirth," reawakening the competitor within.

But she was hiding something: LaBaw had been diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 8. She has a constant tingling in her right arm, referred to by some as "the shakes."

The stigma around the disease, which most people associate with seizures, made her afraid to come forward. In 2012, after her CrossFit success, she decided to make a video and tell the truth.

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"I developed a platform as an athlete and had the courage and strength to stand up," she said, crediting Brown with encouraging her to do it.

"Before, I felt like her epilepsy was a weight, something that burdened her every day of her life, whether others knew it or not," Brown said. "It was a secret, an embarrassment, something that separated her from the rest of the world. After she shared it, things changed. People came out of the woodwork with stories and kind words of encouragement, words of praise for being strong enough to share something so personal."

No longer afraid to say who she is, LaBaw wanted desperately to help others stricken with the disease.

"Three months ago my boyfriend and I visited Colorado to visit my family," said LaBaw, now 33. "I had tears down my cheeks and told him I decided to run cross-country for epilepsy."

"It became apparent early on that this run was about much more than epilepsy. Each and every day I come across stories about the goodness of humankind and/or overcoming adversity," she said. "I'm very lucky that for two years I've had complete seizure control."

The end of her run is in sight: She expects to reach the Wyoming border by October 19.